By Mike Ojo
The Executive Chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes commission, EFCC, Ola Olukoyede, has called on religious leaders across the country to continually preach the right religious doctrine to their followers, especially those that pertain to corruption and its ills on the society.
He gave the charge in Abuja on Wednesday, September 23, 2026, at the 2026 second Council Meeting of the Nigeria Inter-Religious Council, NIREC, and the launch of the Anti-Corruption Interfaith Manual for religious leaders.
In his paper presentation, he stated that the theme of the event “Shared Sacred Flourishing in Nigeria,” demands that stakeholders in the anti-corruption fight must recognize that the wellbeing of Nigerians is dependent on the actions of individual citizens and that acts of corruption create division in the shared flourishing. As such, one of the most consequential contributions religious leaders can make to shared sacred flourishing, he said, is to restore the moral dignity of honest living.
Corruption, he regretted, “privatizes what is shared, converts the commonwealth into private advantage, and allows one person to flourish by making many others poorer adding that the unique role of the EFCC, therefore, is to defend the integrity of that commonwealth.”
According to him, by preaching the right religious doctrines, both Christianity and Islam can retain their distinctive beliefs and traditions while their adherents work together for peace, justice, human dignity and the wellbeing of our nation.
To ensure that worship centres play transformational roles in the lives of Nigerians, the EFCC boss disclosed that the Commission began tasking religious leaders on the need to infuse anti-corruption contents in their messages to their followers. “We have been doing this through the inter-faith framework. Over the years, we have specifically spelt out what should be the roles of religious leaders and the doctrine they need to pass down to their followers. We believe that no religion condones corruption and no faith entertains fraudulent engagements,” he stated.
Further in the endeavour, he disclosed that the EFCC over the years engaged leaders of both the Christian and Muslim faiths in fashioning an Inter-Faith Manual which captures the doctrinal positions of holy books on corruption.
“We are using this opportunity to launch the Manual which we hope our religious leaders will surely find useful in preaching anti-corruption messages to their members,” he said.
Speaking on the non-discriminatory nature and effects of corruption and financial crimes, he stated that “financial crime has no religion. Corruption has no tribe. Fraud does not become Christian or Muslim because of the identity of the person accused of committing it. When public money is stolen, both Christians and Muslims suffer. A badly equipped hospital does not first ask a dying patient where he worships. A collapsed road does not distinguish between a Christian traveller and a Muslim traveller. Unemployment does not respect denomination. Inflation does not spare one faith community. We enjoin our pastors and imams to keep faith with the manual and actively engage their members to know why corruption is heinous.”
While encouraging religious leaders to play more active roles in changing the society, Olukoyede observed that “Religious institutions have extraordinary responsibility in Nigeria’s anti-corruption struggle. The EFCC can investigate a person’s conduct. Faith communities can influence that person’s character. We can prosecute fraud. Religious teaching can cultivate honesty. We can confiscate illicit wealth. Churches and mosques can challenge the values that make society worship wealth without questioning its source. We can punish corruption after the event. Faith can help prevent it before it begins.”
In his remarks, the Executive Secretary of NIREC, Professor Cornelius Afebu Omonokhua stated that the EFCC’s preaching and teaching manual, which was launched, was facilitated as a guide for both Muslims and Christians through the Interfaith Anti-corruption Advisory Committee, IAAC.
“The Interfaith Anti-Corruption Advisory Committee, IAAC of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC has published the second edition of the anti-corruption preaching and teaching manual for Christians and Muslims in Nigeria along with the facilitators’ guides to assist preachers share the authentic teaching of religion with the hope of promoting peaceful co-existence and fight corruption,” he said.
He thanked Olukoyede for leading the anti-corruption conversation adding that the manual is important because it provides a guideline for teaching and preaching anti-corruption among religious institutions.
“No nation can flourish in the face of corruption at all levels. We thank the EFCC Chairman, Mr. Ola Olukoyede for accepting to lead us in today’s conversation. The anti-corruption manual is imperative because ignorance of scriptures is ignorance of God. Through the scriptures of different faith traditions, you can know about God. Any religious person, pastor or imam who is corrupt cannot claim to know God,” he said.
He is positive that the Manual would stop religious preachers and teachers from religious corruption and religion-motivated corruption through professional and fake preaching.
Speaking on the diversity and beliefs of Nigerians, Senator George Akume, the Secretary to the Government of the Federation, and representative of President, Bola Ahmed Tinubu stated that one of the strengths of the country lies in the diversity of faith beliefs and decried the myriad of crimes taking place in the country.
“Our nation is still passing through diverse challenges. Violence, orchestrated by criminal activities, banditry, kidnappings, communal clashes, terrorists’ activities have left wounds in our dear country. In several places, parents are afraid to let their children go to school,” he said, stating that none of these existential threats is acceptable to both the government, religious and community leaders. “The assurance from the President is that every Nigerian must be adequately protected and no efforts will be spared to secure lives, livelihoods and dignity. Our armed forces, security agencies and the police are working day and night, intensifying their operations to reclaim every part of our nation from these non-state actors and criminals with remarkable success,” he said.
He further assured that the federal government will not rest on its oars until every Nigerian life is secured. “This government will not relent until every Nigerian can live, work, travel and pray in safety. Government is building a formidable security system that must be complemented by other stakeholders because security is a joint responsibility. Whenever leaders of faith, Christians, Muslims, traditional community leaders speak with one voice, it will reverberate across Nigeria to effectively counter the narrative of division and conflict. All religions must condemn in a very strong way the barbaric practice of banditry and terrorism because they debase humanity,” he said.
Other dignitaries present at the event include the President, Christian Association of Nigeria, CAN, Reverend Daniel Okoh, the Sultan of Sokoto, Alhaji Muhammad Sa’ad Abubakar, Prof. Ishaq Oloyede, former Registrar of the Joint Admission and Matriculation Board, JAMB, the Emir of Zauzau, Alhaji Ahmed Nuhu Bamalli and Shehu Borno, Abubakar Umar El-Kanemi, among others.
